Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) comprises the majority of all cases of kidney cancer and is one of the most common cancers in industrialized countries. When detected early, radical nephrectomy can result in an excellent survival rate for RCC patients. However, the survival rate for patients with metastasized RCC tumors is reduced dramatically. Therefore, there is a need to provide methodologies, systems and equipment for the early diagnosis of RCC.
RCC patients frequently have non-specific symptoms or are completely asymptomatic. In fact, a significant percentage of renal lesions are incidentally detected by non-invasive imaging techniques. General screening methods for RCC are available, but these methods lack sufficient sensitivity and specificity for broad application. Recent U.S. Pat. No. 6,087,098 generally describes an RT-PCR based method for detecting the expression of the MN gene in peripheral blood samples. The MN protein is believed to be a marker of malignant renal cells. Therefore, detection of the MN gene expression in the peripheral blood suggests the presence of RCC.
The present invention represents a significant advance in the diagnosis of RCC and/or other solid tumors such as prostate cancer and head/neck cancer. The diagnostic test of the present invention relies on the detection of gene expression patterns in peripheral blood cells rather than in tumor cells themselves. As such, the present invention allows widespread screen for early stages of solid tumor progression.